Gabelli Funds LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $VRTX

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC cut its Vertex Pharmaceuticals stake by 46.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 7,018 shares and ending with 7,984 shares valued at about $3.62 million.
• Vertex reported solid quarterly results, beating EPS expectations at $4.47 per share while revenue came in at $2.99 billion, in line with estimates and up 8.3% year over year.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive on VRTX, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $555.17, even though some analysts recently trimmed or adjusted targets.

Gabelli Funds LLC decreased its position in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX - Free Report) by 46.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,984 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 7,018 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $3,620,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in VRTX. Colonial Trust Co SC increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 118.8% in the 3rd quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 70 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 277.8% during the fourth quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 68 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Archer Investment Corp increased its stake in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 89.7% during the fourth quarter. Archer Investment Corp now owns 74 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.96% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VRTX has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $577.00 to $572.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $535.00 to $545.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $495.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen raised Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. Finally, Maxim Group upgraded Vertex Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $575.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $555.17.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of VRTX opened at $433.54 on Friday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $442.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $450.96. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12 month low of $362.50 and a 12 month high of $507.92. The company has a market cap of $110.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.30.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pharmaceutical company reported $4.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $2.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.99 billion. Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 23.86% and a net margin of 35.51%.The company's revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.06 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 16.97 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, EVP Jonathan Biller sold 945 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.35, for a total transaction of $459,600.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,659 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,643,054.65. This represents a 6.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Joy Liu sold 1,104 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $425.02, for a total transaction of $469,222.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 20,729 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,810,239.58. The trade was a 5.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 21,189 shares of company stock worth $9,923,036 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc is a Boston-based biotechnology company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapies for serious diseases. Founded in 1989, Vertex built its reputation on research-driven drug development and is best known for its work in cystic fibrosis (CF), where its portfolio of small-molecule CFTR modulators transformed standards of care for many people with the disease. The company operates research and development, manufacturing and commercial organizations and serves patients and healthcare systems in multiple international markets.

Vertex's marketed products center on CFTR modulators that target the underlying cause of cystic fibrosis rather than just treating symptoms.

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